Partime,
Some listings subscribe to the 'buyer beware' approach; this listing obviously falls into that category. Personally, I wouldn't be able to sleep at night if I listed this way but at least the listing carries the cert for all to read.
'Trolling for suckers' in listings is in a grey area. Some folks believe that as long as there are some clues in the listing the responsibility of finding them and understanding the risk falls upon the buyer. Frankly, this is true. Between the listing title, description and asking price a novice might think that this listing is something that it is not. But reading the cert, along with a bit more understanding of
ebay listings and selling tactics, makes it clear what it is.
Could a new hobbyist mistakenly believe that this is a real color missing error stamp? Possibly. Is the seller within his rights to list it this way? Yes. (But in my opinion this is one of those situations where someone might 'have the right' but needs to ask themselves 'is it right?'.)
All of the NYStamps listings now carries the following blanket statement buried in the terms and conditions; "Some stamps could be expertly restored, regum, or repaired." This follows the same 'buyer beware' approach. To their credit, at least they also give the buyers a heads up. As long as there are buyers who are not paying attention, those which are not well informed, or those which simply have more money than sense I guess than these type listings will be around.
There are many very good sellers on
ebay. Competition is such that you can certainly find sellers and material which you are comfortable with; making the online buying experience rewarding and positive.
Don
Posted 10/13/2014 8:36 pm
